Well, I thought this up while sweeping the day after I read Star by Star. I'll warn you, there's sort of time travel involved, which results in it being AU.

Summary: Anakin Solo is given the chance to help his grandfather prevent the Yuuzhan Vong invasion from ever happening.

Switched Destiny

Anakin Solo opened his eyes and looked around. He was surrounded by a group of Jedi, luminous beings. He wasn?t sure how he knew any of their names, but he instantly identified Mace Windu, Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda.

The little green Master shook his head. "Meant to be, this was not."

"What?" Anakin asked.

Qui-Gon explained, "You aren?t supposed to be dead yet.

"The threat of the Sith still exists," Mace continued. "It was to be your destiny to fight them."

Obi-Wan?s eyes remained fixed on his feet. "The Yuuzhan Vong invasion should have been stopped dead in its tracks decades before your birth. The duty rested on my Padawan."

Mace stepped closer. "We?re giving you the chance to go back and fix this. However, you would have to swear not to interfere with anything else. The rest of Skywalker?s destiny must remain unchanged."

Prevent the Vong invasion? Save Chewie, and Lusa, and Ulhala and countless others?

"Yours, the choice is."

"I?ll do it."

***

Seventeen-year-old Anakin Skywalker hurried through the halls of the Jedi Temple. He hoped none of the Masters would stop him for conduct inappropriate to a Padawan, especially one trained under such unusual circumstances. It seemed that the Force was with him as he pushed open the door to his room.

He stopped short when he saw a young man of about his own age sitting on the bed dressed in Jedi robes of an unfamiliar cut. Clearly another apprentice, but Anakin was certain he had never seen him before.

"Hello, Anakin," the stranger said.

"How do you know my name?"

The boy caught him in a gaze eerily like his own. "I was sent by Master Yoda to assist you with your mission."

"What mission? Obi-Wan hasn?t mentioned a mission."

"Master Kenobi doesn?t know about the mission at this point in time."

A mission without his Master? This stranger was speaking nonsense. Yoda didn?t trust him in the least to do something like that. "Who are you?"

The mysterious Jedi rose to his feet. "You should sit down for this."

Anakin complied without thinking.

"My name is Anakin Solo."

How could this stranger who seemed to know so much about him have the same name? He?d never met another Anakin before. Honestly, he suspected his mother had made the name up. He started to ask him.

Solo held up a hand. "Wait, there?s more. You?re going to have a hard time believing it, but you have to trust me. I?m your grandson."

Anakin gaped at Solo. His grandson? That was impossible. He wasn?t old enough to have a son, much less a grandson. And besides, Jedi were forbidden to marry or have children.

"Are you listening? Fifty years from now, the galaxy will be invaded by a species called the Yuuzhan Vong. Already, in your time, the forerunners have arrived. Grandfather, you hold in your hands the ability to stop them now and prevent billions of people from suffering needlessly. You can save the people of your future."

"Wait, you?re a Jedi. Why do you need me? It?s your time, your war, why don?t you defeat this enemy?"

"I can?t." Solo finally stepped out of the shadows and began to glow dimly. For the first time, Anakin noticed that the boy?s body was transparent. "Because, you see, I?m dead."

Yeah, this is going to be considerably more serious than the babysitting one. I have to be careful to work on this one before the humour piece, so I mostly do it hardcopy first in Law class. I'll try to do more soon.

Thanks to everyone who read the first post. You guys make me feel special. Here's an update, since it's currently more interesting than the chapter of Jane Eyre I'm on.

Anakin gaped at the spirit standing before him. ?Dead? But you?re my age, you shouldn?t be dead yet.?

Solo shrugged. ?Fortunes of war. It?s a lot more painful for my siblings than it is for me now.?

?You shouldn?t be dead.?

Solo nodded. ?Master Yoda said as much.?

None of this made sense. Here was a total stranger, who felt he could just make himself at home in Anakin?s bedroom, claiming to be his dead grandson from the far future. He claimed to be acting on the future orders of Master Yoda himself, and he was asking Anakin to run off alone on some crazy crusade. It would get him in Force knew how much trouble with the Council, especially the contemporary Yoda. It had to be a joke. Some trick with holograms concocted by one of the other students. Where they had thought of this ludicrous grandchild idea he would never know.

?You don?t believe me, do you.? Solo?s voice was soft.

?Would you believe me, if the positions were reversed??

?The point isn?t what I would or wouldn?t believe, it?s what you have to believe now. If I were a hologram, would you be able to feel my presence??

For the first time, Anakin reached out and tried to sense Solo. There he was, a blaze of strength. He was not only real, but also a powerful Jedi. Which made sense, if his story of his ancestry was to be believed.

?My body may be dead, but I?m still alive, still part of the Force. There?s only one thing that lives and yet is not part of the Force.?

Now Solo really was speaking nonsense. The first thing that Qui-Gon had instructed him about the Jedi way was that all life was part of the Force, and without the Force life could not exist. ?That?s impossible.?

? ?Impossible? is a word you have to be careful with. It has a tendency of coming back to haunt you at the worst possible time. If you want to survive, you have to learn how to ignore the odds.?

?Then tell me, how is it that something lives without the Force??

?We can?t explain it, all we know is that we?ve been confronted with the fact of it every day since the Vong invaded. We can?t feel them, but we know that they?re there.?

?Wait just one second. You?re telling me that these Vong don?t appear in the Force and you want me to fight them for you? Are you completely out of your mind??

Solo shook his head. ?I?m quite sane, thank you. Dying gave me a lot of perspective on the universe.?

Anakin rose from his chair. ?You really think that I could win this??

Solo began to lay a hand on his shoulder, before realizing that he wouldn?t be able to feel it. He shoved it into the pocket of his robe instead. ?I don?t know if anyone else can.?

?You know that I could never get authorization for that without my Master present.?

Naki laughed. ?Surely you don?t meant to tell me that you?ve never heard of ?borrowing? a vessel.?

Anakin started. Exactly how much did Naki know about him?

I have my sources of information. Naki?s voice spoke directly into Anakin?s head.

Why are you talking to me like this all of a sudden?

Well, we?re about to go out in public. People might look at you strangely if they thought you were talking to yourself.

Can?t they see you? Anakin asked.

Naki shrugged. Only if I decide to let them. Trust me, the fewer people who know about my presence here, the better.

The pair made their way towards the nearest spaceport. When they came to a doorway, Anakin watched in shock as Naki walked through the wall next to it instead.

Don?t do that! It?s creepy.

Sorry, I?d never tried it before, Naki explained.

Of all the guides he could get on a mission, he got stuck with a teenager who was completely new to being a ghost. He was sure that other pre-destined heroes had wise ancient Jedi Masters. Not Anakin, though. He had a Padawan from the future.

Hurry up, Gramps. I have all the time in the universe, but you don?t.

They hurried the rest of the way to the hangar, where Anakin was told to pick out something he liked.

Make sure it?s something small, that people aren?t likely to miss.

What about that one over there? Anakin pointed to a light freighter in the corner.

It would be too difficult to get it out without anyone noticing. That one over by the launch door is a better choice. The ship Naki indicated was a hyperdrive enabled starfighter.

But it only seats one.

Naki reached his arm through Anakin?s chest. I?m a ghost, remember? I don?t actually occupy any physical space. Now let?s get going.